Electroplating-barrel



F. H. HARTZELL.

ELECTROPLATING BARREL.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 22. 1919.

1,377, 155, PatentedMay 3, 1921.

, o o o o O O 0000000000 oooooooooocg matter hereof.' Fig. 2 is a detail vide FOREST H. HARTZELL, OF DAYTON, OHIO.

ELECTROPLATIvNG-BARREL.

T o all whom z't mag/ concern.'

Be it known that I FOREST H. HARTZELL, citizen of the United tates, residing at Dayton, in the county of Montgomery and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful improvements in Electroplating-Barrels, (Case 1),) of which thefollowingis a specification.

My invention relates to electroplating apparatus and more particularly to that type of apparatus employing a revolving barrel or drum in which .the articles to beplated are tumbled and which is suspended 1n a tank or vat of electrolytic solution. f

The object of the invention is to improve the structure as well as the means and mode of operation of such devices whereby they will ,not only be cheapened in construction,

- but will be more efficient in use, positive in operation, economical, and unlikely to get out of repair.

A f ther object of the invention is to proiinovable contact bars or cathodes which ay be readily and quickly removed for cleaning and replacement withoutthe necessity of destroying or disassembling the entire barrel or drum.

A further object of the invention is to provide an economical method of electroplating in which the cathodes or contact bars after receiving plating deposits of such entent as to impair their efiiciency as negative terminals, may be employed as electrolytic anodes thus affording a purified supply of plating metal and obviating losses of metal-` lic deposits.

A further object is to provide a solution proof barrel capable of withstanding the heated alkaline solutioncommonly used' inV modern electroplating processes. i

With the above primary a'nd other incidental objectsl in 'View as will more .fully appear in the specification, the invention consists ofthe features of construction,"u the" parts and .combinations thereof, and the mode of operation or their hereinafter described and set forth inthe claims.

Referring to the drawings, Figurel is a perspective view of an electroplating barrel embodying the invention formin the subject longitudinal sectional view thereof. Fig. 3 perspective view. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal y Speciiication of Letters Patent. Y :Application led April 22, 191,9. Serial No. 291,894.

`Iio part of the `as described in the Aof barrel. It is tobe understood, however, that equivalents, as

is a detail Patented May 3, 1921.

sectional view of a modification. Fig. 5 is a detail view cfa further modification.

Like parts are indicated by similar charactors of reference throughout the several views.

An electroplating apparatus as constructed embodies a tank or vat adapted to contain the electrolytic'solution or electrolyte, in which is suspended the revoluble drum shown in Fig. lof the drawings.

riving means of suitable character is providedfor rotating the drum or barrel within the tank, as well as hoisting means for lifting the barrel out of the solution and for lowering it thereinto. Such apparatus forms t present invention and has not therefore been shown nor'described in de# tail. Reference may be'had, however,u to my copending application Serial No. 291893 in which a suitable type of apparatus of this character is disclosed. It is to be understood, however, that the barrel or drum forming the subject matter hereof is not limited to use with such apparatus, but may be employed 'in conjunction with any form of driving mechanism or hoisting means and any style of tank or vat, and may further be used asa burnishing or tumbling barrel, copending application usually barrel forming the subject matter hereof is shown as of polygonal form, the disclosure the'drawing being a hexagonal drum or the drum may be! formed with, any number of sides,

or may be,` lcylindrical vif desired. As disclosed in the drawing, the drum or barrel comprises two polygonal heads 1i spaced one from the other and interconnected by longitudinally disposed bars or mullions 2 located coincident with the angles of the` polygonal heads. vThe 'bars or mullions 2 are preferably, though not necessarily, formed somewhat T-shape in ocross section as shown in Figs. 2 and 4, the lateral ledges of which overhang perforated wall platesl 3. These perforated plates 3 may be of any suitable material such as wood, celluloid, bakelite, orcelain, or other non-metallic material. he perforated wallplates 3 are secured to the heads 1 bymeans of overlying cap strips 4 at each end of the -perforated wall plates coincident with the heads 1, which strips are secured in position by attachment screws, or other attaching means. One of the perforated Wall plates 3 is made removable or is detachably connected in order to afford access to the interior of the drum or barrel. Each of the heads 1 is provided with a concentric supporting head 6 from which projects a trunnion 7 upon which the barrel is rotated.

Embedded in one of the heads 1 are a plurality of radially disposed electrical conductors comprising rods 8 connected at inner or adjacent ends with the supporting head 6 andtrunnion 7 and extending outwardly to the angles of the polygonal head or to points coincident with the mullions or longitudinal strips Whether said head be polygonal or circular. At their outer ends the electrical conductors 8 are screw threaded as indicated The longitudinal mullions or bars 2 are detachably connected upon the rods 8 by means of thescrew threaded ends extending through the extremities of the bars or mullions and engaging with nuts 11 embedded in the mullions. This construction renables the mullions or bars 2 to be quickly and readily disengaged from the heads 1 and from the perforated Wall plates 3 Which they overhang.

Secured to the inner side of the bars or mullions 2, that is to say upon the face of the inward projecting medial tongues thereof, are metallic contact bars 12 which constitute the cathodes of the plating apparatus. These contact bars 12 'make electrical connection attheir extremities With the ends 9 ofthe electrical conductors 8. The electrical contact is insured by the clamping action of the attachment nuts 11 which cause the extremities of the contact bars 12 yto bear heavily upon the collars or swells 13 formed on the conductors8. These collars 13 are preferably somewhat tapered and by the clamping action ofthe nuts 11, are forced into the engagement holes in the conv tact bars. The construction is such that by disengaging the attachment nuts 11 the mullions or longitudinal bars 2 may be readily removed to permit the cleaning or clearing of the contact bars 12 of metallic deposits and to permit the replacement of said bars;

It has been found in practice that a gradually increasing volume of the plating metal is deposited upon the contact bars or cathodes of the plating barrel. This electro deposit gradually increases the effective extent or area of the contact bars or cathodes thereby consuming more current and impairing and diminishing the eliiciency of the plating apparatus. It is found that as the contact bars or cathodes increase in extent the current passes more quickly and easily between the anodes and such contact bars particle of the plating material.

' articles to be plated Within the barrel or drum. It is therefore desirable that the contact bars or cathodes be kept reasonably clean and clear of metallic deposit. Heretofore it has .been customary to construct such cylinders or drums with the contact bars or cathodes integrally embodied in such manner as to prevent easy access or removal. One of the primary objects of the present invention is to provide means whereby the contact bars are readily and quickly accessible.

It has heretofore been the common practice to discard the cylinders or drums when they have become impregnated with the metallic deposit or when the contact bars or cathodes have collected an excessive amount of metallic deposit and have therefore destroyed the efficiency of the cylinder` or drum. This resulted in a considerable loss of plating material. The metallic deposit so collected is of a highly reiined and pure nature but because of the necessity of disassembling or destroying the drum or cylinder to recover such deposit the reuse of such metallic bodlies has heretofore been uneconomical. A further object of the present invention is to enable the recovery of such electro deposits of metal by the removal of the mullions or longitudinal bars 2 and the subsequent detachment of the contact bars. 12 uponwhich such deposits are collected. These deposits of pure metal may then be suspended in the plating solution and employed as electrolytic anodes, thereby returning the metal to the solution for redeposit upon other articles. Applicants cylinder or drum constructed as described With detachable or removable mullions or Contact bars thus enables the transference of the cathodes to use as anodes and results in the recovery and saving of every The recovery thus effected is no small item in the plating industry. The ease with which applicants construction enables such recovery and the increased efficiency resulting from the constant use of clean or renewed contact bars or cathodes all of which is due to applicants particular construction embodying removable mullions or cathode supports constitutes a marked and important advance in the electroplating art. It is obvious that t-he replaced mullions with the contactbars (attached, may if desired, be suspended in inner ends with the trunnion head 6. At

rest upon these inturned ends, making electrical contact therewith as shown in Fig.

. 4. In this form of construction the removgeneral.

able mullions are shown as held by studs 16 extending through the mullion and contact strip and engaging in a screw threaded nut or sleeve 17 embedded in the head 1. These studs serve to hold the mullions in place and to draw the contact bars 12 tightly into engagement with the conductors 14.

In Fig. 5 there is shown a modification in which in lieu of removingl the entire mullion in order to renew or examine the contact bar 12, each mullion is provided with a removable insert 18, shown in Fig. 1 on which the contact bar 12 is carried. Each mullion bar is mortised to receive the removable insert, the ends of which are rabbeted and overhang the ends of the mortise as shown at 19 Fig..5. The insert is removably secured by bolts 20. In this construction contact fingers 21 extend from the conductors 8, or in event the construction of Fig. 4 is used the laterally bent terminals may be extended in like manner upon which the-ends of the contact bar 12 rest in electrical engagement.

In all of these forms of tective insulating buttons over the attachment members 11, 16 and 20 to minimize the deposit of metal thereon.

While as before stated the heads and mullions may be of wood and the perforated plates 3 may be of wood, Celluloid, bakelite, or other material, one of the objects of my invention is to provide a barrel suitable for use with hot solutions. The use of hot plating solutions has recently become quite While the wooden drums or barrels will ordinarily withstand cold solutions for a reasonably long time, they de'- teriorate very rapidly under the influence of hot solution. Moreover the wood being porous becomes`liighly impregnated with the plating metal. To overcome these difiicu'lties an important feature of my invention consists in forming the heads 1 the mullions 2 and plates 3 from vitreous or ceramic materials whereby they will be nonporous and will be unaffected by the plating solutions, either hot or cold. Such parts are readily molded to the desired shapes by the methods now in use. This is an application of vitreous or ceramic products to a new use. whereby there are produced improved results entirely overcoming the difconstruction proficulties heretofore experienced and mak-f' ing practical the use of hot plating solutions whereby the time of pla-ting operations is very much reduced, whereas heretofore Athe gain of time in plating was to a very 22 are inserted' great extent offset by the deterioration and rapid destruction of the containers.

From the above description it will be apparent that there is thusV provided a device of the character described, possessing the particular features of advantage before enumerated as desirable but which obviously is susceptible of modification in its form, proportion, detail construction or arrangement of parts, without departing from the principle involved'or sacrificing any of its advantages.

While in order to comply with the statl utes, the invention has been described in language more or less specific as to certain structural features, it is tobe understood that the invention is not limited to any specific details, but that the means and construction herein described comprise but one mode of putting the invention into effect, and the invention is therefore claimed in any of its possible forms or modifications Within the legitimate and valid scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim 1. In an electroplating apparatus, a revoluble drum, an electrically connected trunnion for said drum, a plurality of radially disposed electrical 'conductors connected with said trunnion, and a plurality of removable contact bars or cathodes longitudinally disposed about the periphery of the drumF and detachably engaged in electrical contact with said radially disposed electrical conductors.

2. In an electroplating apparatus, a revoluble drum, a plurality of removablecontact bars or cathodes carried by the drum, and means for detachably connecting said removable bars with a source of electrical energy.

3.- In an electroplating apparatus, a revoluble drum, comprising spaced heads, perforated peripheral walls extending between said heads, longitudinally disposed removable mullions connecting the heads, contact bars carried by the removable mullions, and electrical connections connecting the contact bars with a source of electrical energy.

4. In an electroplating apparatus, a revoluble drum comprising spaced heads, longitudinally disposed mullions connecting the heads,` detachable connections for said mullions, cathode contact bars carried by said detachable mullions, perforated wall plates about the periphery of the drum intermediate the mullions, and electrical connections between said cathode contact bars and a source of electrical energy.

5. In an electroplating apparatus, a revoluble drum, a Aplurality of longitudinally disposed contact bars arranged about the periphery of the drum, a detachable support 2r each cathode bar, means for detachably retaining the bars in adjusted position and electrical connections between each bar and a source of electrical energy.

6. In an electroplating apparatus, a revoluble drum, a plurality of radially disposed electrical connections carried upon the head of said drum, the extremities of said connections being extended laterally, a series of longitudinally disposed contact bars normally making electrical engagement with the laterally projecting portions of the said electrical connections, and detachable supports for said contact bars.

, 7. The herein described process consisting of electroplating metal from an anode upon an article or articles to be plated by bringing them into contact with Contact bars of the plating metal employed as cathodes upon which are deposited accumulations of surplus plating metal, removing said cathode bars with their metallic accumulations, and subsequently employing such bars and adhering metallic deposits as electrolytic anodes whereby the deposit of metal is returned to the plating solution for redeposit upon other articles to be plated with minimum losses.

8. In an electroplating apparatus, a revoluble drum having heads constructed of vitreous materials whereby it will withstand the penetration of the plating solutions, contacts of metal carried upon the ,periphery of said drum and radially disposed electrical conductors embedded in these vitreous heads of said drum for electrically connecting the contacts with a source of electrical energy.

9. In an electrode plating apparatus, a

revoluble drum having heads constructed of vitreous materials, detachable mullions also of vitreous material connecting said heads one to the other, metallic contact bars carried by said mullions, and non-metallic perforated plate supported upon said mullions intermediate said heads and means for electrically connecting the Contact bars with source of electrical energy, substantially as specified.

10. The herein described process consisting of electroplating metal from an anode upon an article or articles to be plated, accumulating a deposit of surplus plating metal upon a series of Contact bars forming cathodes, replacing at intervals said bars, or a portion thereof, having metallic accumulations thereon with similar bars devoid of accumulations of metal employing the replaced bars as anodes whereby the deposited accumulations of metal are returned to the plating solution for redeposit upon articles to be plated with minimum losses.

11. The herein described process consisting of electroplating metal from an anode upon an article or articles to be plated and subsequently employing the anode when reduced in size by the dlsbursement of metal therefrom for plating purposes as a cathode in the plating operation whereby said reduced anode while being used as a cathode will accumulate a deposit of surplus plating metal to enable its subsequent reuse as an anode.

12. The herein described process consisting of electroplating metal from an anode upon an article or articles to be plated accumulating a deposit of surplus plating metal upon a cathode and subsequently employing the cathode and its metallic accumulation as an anode in the plating operation whereby its metallic accumulation will be disbursed to enable its subsequent vreuse as a cathode.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 31st day of March, A. D. 1919.

FOREST H. HARTZELL.

Vitnesses:

E. E. DUNCAN, ADELLA SHANNON. 

